Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm searching for a new TV and information on the remotes isn't all that plentiful.
I currently have two TVs, my primary one being a Toshiba and my secondary being an LG.
On the Toshiba, there is one button on the remote which automatically allows me to change picture mode. No menus, it just changes the mode each time you push the button. (Zoom, 4:3, etc.). Also, it returns to a default mode when you change channels.
On the LG, you have to bring up a menu. change the mode, then close the menu. Not only is this a hassle, but if you change channels, there is no default mode for it to return through, so you have to go through the same process all over. It's a royal pain.
To those who have experience with TVs other than Toshiba or LG, can you tell me how simple or convoluted the remote is. Samsung would probably be at the top of the list I want to check out, but I'd like info on any brands out there.
TV manufacturers try to squeeze as many functions into as few buttons as possible, choosing to bury most functions deep into menus.
My pet peeve was closed-caption (CC.) An old TV I had had a CC button. Press it once and CC was on. Press it again and it's off. Today there's about a 12 button sequence to turn CC on or off, so I just try to listen harder.
Good luck seeking a TV that has a simple solution to getting it to do what YOU want it to.
Look into a Harmony Universal Remote. I put my original TV remotes away and use this one exclusively. It handles all of the buttons on all of the remotes. The 650 (batteries) or 700(rechargable) will do what you want with up to 8 devices. They start around $35 when on sale, the regular price is higher. I think there is a newer model, the 665, https://www.amazon.com/Logitech-Harm...3QTCB47JFFV09R
That said, my Samsung does have a button for picture mode. My LG (I think) has a button labeled "Aspect". It will vary by manufacturer and model. Do the research before you buy.
We had an LG that worked same way for the picture. It annoyed me endlessly, half the channels were stretched one way or the other, and you had to constantly fiddle with the zoom, or watch them out of proportion.
Last 2 TVs have been Samsung. Never a need for the zoom function, the TV fits the picture correctly on all channels. If I am watching shows from the 70s on Antenna TV, they look proportional. Switch to an HD channel, it fills the screen.
This is caused by analog legacy issues where the user is not understanding there equipment and/or the broadcaster improperly broadcasting.
Let's start with DVD as example. DVD uses a resolution of 720*480 which is neither 4:3 or 16:9. The raw 16:9 video with adjustment for aspect if it had round shape it would like egg. No part of the video stream is black bar unless the aspect wider that 16:9. There is flag set on the DVD to tell the DVD player if it is 16:9 or 4:3. If you ripped the video file it can also have a flag setting the aspect, any software or digital device can read the flag and adjust it properly.
Where the issues start is the analog realm, if you were to play this on older 4:3 TV you need to set the DVD player for 4:3 TV. It will read the aspect flag, for 16:9 it will letterbox it adding black bars top and bottom. For 4:3 it just outputs full screen. For display on 16:9 TV you need to set the DVD player to full display regardless of aspect, the TV will see this as 4:3 source and pillarbox it adding black bars left and right. Stretch out for 16:9 material.
This is where it can really complicated, if you have 4:3 broadcast with a 16:9 source they add the letterboxing as part of the video stream. Same thing would happen if you played DVD on widescreen TV on DVD player that has been set for display on 4:3 TV. The TV see the 4:3 flag and adds pillarboxing giving you bars on the top, bottom, left and right.
the coalman speaks wisely. Newer sets can be set to auto-adjust aspect ratio (actually, not mess with it?)
Back to the remote question, I have a higher end relatively new Sony, and the remote is a challenge, but for a different reason. With no backlight, the controls for ff, pause, stop, play etc. are impossible to tell one from another. If I want to pause a netflix so, for example, I need to turn on a light to see the button.
Newer sets can be set to auto-adjust aspect ratio (actually, not mess with it?)
Problem is, the auto-adjust aspect ratio (which I have on both my current older TV's) only works if the broadcaster/streamer/cable company is sending out the signal correctly. The Weather Channel for instance has a widescreen picture, but it is sent out in 4:3, so you have to zoom every time. Same is true for C-Span, CNBC, NBCSN and others. Now whether this is the network or an intermediary that's sending it out in the wrong ratio varies. But that is why you have to constantly fool with ratios.
Last thing I want to do, like you, is constantly fiddle with the zoom....ESPECIALLY when you have to use a menu to get to it.
Back to the remote question, I have a higher end relatively new Sony, and the remote is a challenge, but for a different reason. With no backlight, the controls for ff, pause, stop, play etc. are impossible to tell one from another. If I want to pause a netflix so, for example, I need to turn on a light to see the button.
I've never had a remote with backlight so that's nothing new to me.
Last thing I want to do, like you, is constantly fiddle with the zoom....ESPECIALLY when you have to use a menu to get to it.
On my older set, some content was letterboxed on all four sides. Very irritating, and the zoom function only partially handled it. Very frustrating. Sometimes made me miss my poor man's wide screen - my old 20" tube set, where we sat about 2 feet from the screen...
With my new Sony, the scaling problems have gone away. Not sure if it's better content or better hardware, though. We don't do cable, never have, so at least we avoid certain kinds of screw ups. I've heard that some cable companies also over-compress content, with some quality loss. Does that still happen?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
